Hugo Tunes In
by Libby Clemens
Summary: <html><head></head>It's been over a year since his mother left. So when his father suggests they move on to a new place Hugo is less than thrilled. This is about that and Hugo's less than stellar  life so far.</html>


Hugo had been shoveling down a mouthful of sausage and eggs when his father suddenly burst through the kitchen door and announced in a booming voice.

"Hugo, my boy we're selling this crap house and moving to Blanktonshire!"

It took every bit of bodily control in Hugo's arsenal not to choke to death on his breakfast. Seeing his father this early in the day had been a shocking enough surprise it could've turned Hugo into a ghost.

Hugo had expected his father to still be out on settee in the living room sleeping off whatever he'd been drinking the night before but instead here he was standing in the kitchen red-faced, which was nothing new but today he actually managed to look chipper, something he hadn't appeared to be since forever. Ron whipped out his wand and summoned the kettle out of hiding putting it to the stove and drawing out eggs and bacon into a nearby skillet that was also placed on the stove. He seemed to be saying something but with his back turned Hugo was at a total lost to make it all out. Ron whipped his breakfast onto a plate and sat on stool at the counter island directly in front of Hugo. Seeing Hugo's perplexed expression Ron rolled his eyes and made a gesture as if tuning a radio.

"C'mon Hugo, tune in I've already told you all about it once already."

During these awkward moments when his father actually bothered to converse with him Hugo couldn't help but miss mother. It wasn't as if Hugo couldn't read his father's lips if his father would bother to face him. As slurred, as his father's speech had tended to be these last few months Hugo still managed to understand him fairly well. But his father always expected Hugo to have them in and of course Ron had never learned to properly sign enough to have a full on spontaneous conversation with Hugo either. Reluctantly Hugo fished through his pockets and pulled out his hearing aids, turning them on and gingerly placing one in each ear. He tried to hide his annoyance at the high-pitched squeal they admitted before adjusting and signaled for his father to continue. His father waited had been keeping eye contact all the time while he wolfed down his breakfast once he saw that Hugo had them in he continued or rather re-began the conversation.

"I've been offered a new position; a good one training up the new recruits at the Auror's camp in Blanktonshire. And I've accepted it. The job I mean."

There was a moment of silence that seemed to go on forever between them. Eventually goaded on by the silence Ron continued.

"We're probably going to need to be selling the house soon, position starts in about a month. So we should you know…probably start getting that all together."

"What about Rose?"

Ron smiled and thoughtfully scratched his head flicked his wand out and put the breakfast dishes into the sink.

"Well you know our Rosie, when she's not in school she'll be busy with her extra studies and traveling to friends."

Seeing that Hugo was hard placed to be convinced he added

" We can put what she wants to keep in the new place as well, you know."

This was a fair response and not really the argument point for Hugo's concern. Rose was rarely home anymore. Rose found it hard to cope with change and there had been so many changes this past year already she hadn't liked seeing how their father dealt with his grief but that didn't stop her from sending an owl every week from Hogwarts. Tear-stained letters of frazzled concern to Hugo begging for updates on their father and Hugo's life in general.

"Yeah but Dad, if we move out to Blanktonshire I mean…" he let his question die in the air. It was in a way apart of was the great hanging cloud that his family had been hanging under for months now and Hugo often thought that if he pushed he might get actual answers out of his father questions he'd been sitting on since this had started. His father jolly demeanor seemed to die at this question though he was still smiling Ron Weasley eyes took on a sad and watery glint. As quickly as the expression had flickered Ron seemed to shove it away just as fast going so far as to actually swallow.

"I know this is all very sudden Hugo, but I think it'll be best for us all. All things considered."

"What about when she comes back, if she comes back…?"

"Hugh, if she was going to come back to all this she'd have been back ages ago, we need to-."

"But how do you even know."

Hugo was annoyed how he seemed to be pleading desperately.

"She's not going to be back anytime soon Hugh. Your mother she…well she's got a job there now. She's moved onto other things and I think..." his father stumbled through his words here.

"Well who's said that? " Hugo interrupted. He was briefly annoyed to hear the desperation in his tone but after all this time he really wanted to know the truth for sure.

"She hasn't been talking to anybody properly not in months not a Floo call and all her letters have been...well they don't say anything important!" said Hugo in frustration.

"Your Aunt Ginny's been in contact with her off and on. Apparently she's been asking a lot about you kids. She wants to see you both again perhaps in the summer." his father was already turning away and preparing to dejectedly go back to his gloomy domain on settee in the living room. He hadn't slept in his own bedroom the entire time since Hermione had left him. There'd be no more talking if he got the settee and the cupboard of various whiskeys nearby.

"Oh what a load! " said Hugo getting up from his seat and following his father into the living room. Ron pressed the top of a globe that opened up to reveal many different colored bottles. He began to pour himself a glass his back to Hugo the entire time.

"She wants to see us, does she? Well why doesn't she at least come back to same country as us then? Or I dunno write with some regularity or at least talk about what's gone on. I'm fairly sure owls still manage to make it over the ocean, don't they?" he was speaking so quickly he starting to stumble over his words.

"Look Hugh don't be angry with your mother over all of this." said Ron as he sat himself in his worn out place on the settee.

His father used his being rational voice for a moment Hugo could almost see a shadow of his father before his mother had left. Then Ron began to nurse his drink his scraggly beard dipped deep in the cup and this for some reason only made Hugo feel angrier

"Who says its her I'm angry with its pretty obvious who's fault this all is."

There that a glint of deep anger that crossed Ron Weasley's features and Hugo wondered if his father might actually do something to him. He was almost giddy at the idea of a physical brawl with his father at this moment and time. Instead his father looked tiredly at him and calmly sad.

"I can't do anything else Hugo, I've done what I've done and this is what things are."he said between sips.

Hugo had really been expecting this and found that all rage regretfully turning into pity of some sort for his sad father.

"I have to do something else now Hugo this place is…" Ron struggled to find words.

"Like a shrine to a dead era." Hugo supplied and Ron gave a hollow laugh

"Like that yeah," his father suddenly clapped his hands as if to snap them both out of this current mood. Ron smiled and took on his previous cheery affectation.

"Look, it won't be all bad you know. We can get all new things for the new house. We can do and live however we want, live like wild animals even. It'll be interesting if nothing else." The mood now officially lightened led Hugo to ruefully reply

"Yeah I guess."

Suddenly uncomfortable Hugo shuffled away from his father and made his way towards the stairs that led to his room his father called once more after him.

"It'll be alright you know, Hugo. Wait and see."

Turning away and taking out his hearing aids Hugo could only feel himself half-believing his father.


End file.
